Immanuel Hermann Fichte

Infobox_Philosopher
region = Western Philosophy
era = 19th-century philosophy
color = #B0C4DE


image_caption =
name = Immanuel Hermann Fichte
birth = birth date|1797|7|18|df=y
Jena, Saxe-Weimar-Jena
death = death date and age|1879|8|8|1791|7|18|df=y
Stuttgart, Württemberg
school_tradition = Idealism
main_interests = Metaphysics, Ethics,
Philosophy of religion
influences = His father J.G. Fichte,
Leibniz, Hegel,
Johann Friedrich Herbart
influenced =
notable_ideas =

Immanuel Hermann von Fichte (18 July, 1797 – 8 August, 1879) was a German philosopher and son of Johann Gottlieb Fichte.

Biography

Fichte was born in Jena. Having held educational posts at Saarbrücken and Düsseldorf, in 1836 he became a professor of philosophy at Bonn, and in 1840 full professor. In 1842 he received a call to Tübingen, retired in 1875, and died at Stuttgart on the 8th of August 1879.

In 1837 he had edited the "Zeitschrift für Philosophie" as an organ of his views, especially on the subject of the philosophy of religion, where he was in alliance with C.H. Weisse; but, whereas Weisse thought that the Hegelian structure was sound in the main, and its imperfections might be mended, Fichte held it to be defective, and spoke of it as a masterpiece of erroneous consistency or consistent error. Fichte's general views on philosophy seem to have changed considerably as he gained in years, and his influence has been impaired by certain inconsistencies and an appearance of eclecticism, which is strengthened by his predominantly historical treatment of systems, his desire to include divergent systems within his own, and his conciliatory tone.

His philosophy is an attempt to reconcile monism (Hegel) and individualism (Herbart) by means of monadism (Leibniz). He attacks Hegelianism for its pantheism, lowering of human personality, and imperfect recognition of demands of the moral consciousness. God, he says, is to be regarded not as an absolute but as an Infinite Person, whose desire it is that he should realize himself in finite persons. These persons are objects of God's love, and he arranges the world for their good. The direct connecting link between God man is the genius, a higher spiritual individuality existing fan by the side of his lower, earthly individuality. Fichte advocates an ethical theism, and his arguments might be turned to account by the apologist of Christianity. In conception of finite personality he recurs to something like monadism of Leibniz. His insistence on moral experience connected with his insistence on personality.

One of the tests which Fichte discriminates the value of previous systems is adequateness with which they interpret moral experience. The same reason that made him depreciate Hegel made him praise Krause (panentheism) and Schleiermacher, and speak respectfully of English philosophy. It is characteristic of Fichte's most excessive receptiveness that in his latest published work, "Der neuere Spiritualismus" (1878), he supports his position by arguments of a somewhat occult or theosophical cast, not unlike that adopted by F.W.H. Myers.

He also edited the complete works and literary correspondence of his father. See R Eucken, "Zur Erinnerung I. H. F.", in "Zeitschrift für die philosophie", cx. (1897); CC Scherer, "Die Gotteslehre von I. H. F."; article by Karl Hartmann in "Allgemeine deutsche Biographie" xlviii. (1904). Some of his works were translated by J.D. Morell under the title of "Contributions to Mental Philosophy" (1860).

Quotes

"If we cannot live so as to be happy, let us least live so as to deserve it."

Works

*"De philosophiae novae Platonicae origine" (1818).
*"Sätze zur Vorschule der Theologie" (1826). [http://books.google.com/books?id=Mm0_AAAAIAAJ University of California] .
*"Beiträge zur Charakteristik der neueren Philosophie" (1829). [http://books.google.com/books?id=WdkNAAAAYAAJ Harvard] . 2nd edition, 1841. [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95390n/f3.table Gallica] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=6WMNAAAAYAAJ NYPL] .
*"Johann Gottlieb Fichtes Leben und literarischer Briefwechsel" (1830-31). 2 volumes.
**Volume 1, 1830. 2nd edition, 1862. [http://books.google.com/books?id=kTwBAAAAQAAJ Oxford] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=TjczrZBZXOAC Stanford] ; [http://gdz.sub.uni-goettingen.de/no_cache/dms/load/img/?IDDOC=289714 University of Göttingen] .
**Volume 2, 1831. [http://books.google.com/books?id=1HcNAAAAYAAJ NYPL] . 2nd edition, 1862. [http://books.google.com/books?id=kjwBAAAAQAAJ Oxford] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=q59-ttuvcBYC Stanford] .
*"Über Gegensatz, Wendepunkt und Ziel heutiger Philosophie" (1832). [http://books.google.com/books?id=ZxZIAAAAMAAJ University of Michigan] .
*"Grundzüge zum Systeme der Philosophie" (1833-1846). 3 volumes.
**Volume 1, 1833. "Das Erkennen als Selbsterkennen". [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95392b Gallica] .
**Volume 2, 1836. "Die Ontologie". [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95393p Gallica] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=ZxZIAAAAMAAJ&printsec=titlepage&source=gbs_summary_r&cad=0#PRA2-PR1,M1 University of Michigan] .
**Volume 3, 1846. "Die speculative Theologie oder allgemeine Religionslehre". [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k953941 Gallica] .
*"Die Idee der Persönlichkeit und die individuelle Fortdauer" (1834). 2nd edition, 1855.
*"De principiorum contradictionis" (1840). [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95395c/f4.chemindefer Gallica] .
*"System der Ethik" (1850-53). 2 volumes.
**Volume 1, 1850. [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95396q Gallica] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=-1oAAAAAMAAJ NYPL] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=2c_teLrL1ToC Stanford] ; [http://sdr.lib.umich.edu/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015026495286 University of Michigan] .
**Volume 2, part 1, 1851. [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95399r Gallica] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=oF4AAAAAMAAJ NYPL] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=OMIIAAAAQAAJ Oxford (1&2)] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=2Mi3RqrU1xsC University of Michigan (1&2)] .
**Volume 2, part 2, 1853. [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k954004 Gallica] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=FVwAAAAAMAAJ NYPL] .
*"Anthropologie, Die Lehre von der menschlichen Seele" (1856). [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95389f Gallica] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=Q_kFAAAAIAAJ Lane] ; [http://sdr.lib.umich.edu/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015026495328 University of Michigan] . 2nd edition, 1860. [http://books.google.com/books?id=AjECAAAAQAAJ Oxford] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=k0IJAAAAQAAJ Oxford (Taylor)] . 3rd edition, 1876.
*"Über den Unterschied zwischen ethischem und naturalistischem Theismus" (1857).
*"Zur Seelenfrage, Eine philosophische Confession" (1859). [http://books.google.com/books?id=4FI_AAAAIAAJ University of California] .
**(English) "Contributions to Mental Philosophy" (1860). [http://books.google.com/books?id=hC8RAAAAYAAJ Harvard] .
*"Psychologie. Die Lehre vom bewussten Geiste des Menschen" (1864-73). 2 volumes. [http://books.google.com/books?id=pEQJAAAAQAAJ Oxford] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=jrxUpd3oSbwC University of Michigan] .
**Volume 1, 1864.
**Volume 2, 1873. [http://books.google.com/books?id=XC8RAAAAYAAJ Harvard] .
*"Die Seelenfortdauer und die Weltstellung des Menschen" (1867).
*"Vermischte Schriften zur Philosophie, Theologie und Ethik" (1869). 2 volumes. [http://books.google.com/books?id=dywCAAAAQAAJ Oxford] .
**Volume 1. [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95401g Gallica] .
**Volume 2. [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k95402t Gallica] .
*"Die theistische Weltansicht und ihre Berechtigung" (1873). [http://books.google.com/books?id=TDsCAAAAQAAJ Oxford] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=eWPIOGkeS8oC University of Michigan] .
*"Fragen und Bedenken über die nächste Fortbildung deutscher Speculation" (1876). [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k77815b Gallica] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=ASYCAAAAQAAJ Oxford] ; [http://books.google.com/books?id=Ozah3fz7AZsC University of Michigan] .
*"Der neuere Spiritualismus, sein Wert und seine Täuschungen" (1878). [http://books.google.com/books?id=BiYCAAAAQAAJ Oxford] .

External links

* [http://www.utm.edu/research/iep/f/fichteih.htm Immanuel Hermann Fichte] entry at the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
* Biography in "Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie" [http://mdz.bib-bvb.de/digbib/lexika/adb/images/adb048/@ebt-link?target=idmatch(entityref,adb0480541) Vol. 48, pp. 539-552] by Karl Hartmann. (German)